Pen and Ink on Texture

Hi, welcome to my blog:

I have just finished a couple of projects that incorporated some different techniques, and I am very pleased with the results.

This piece is called Le Chat Noir, and was designed by Linda Lock. Linda's instructions for this project are for acrylic paints. Since acrylic paint is not something I use on a regular basis, I converted most of the project to pen and ink with oils. I started by applying a layer of Texture Crackle to the board, let it dry, sanded it lightly, sprayed it with about 4 coats of Liberty, let it dry, then applied the pattern. I outlined all the main parts of the pattern with pen and ink, then I used my pen to ink in a lot of the detail (roof, chimney, steps, etc.) Then I used oil paint to apply most of the paint. When I was finished with oils (and after spraying) I used acrylics to apply all the greenery. With all that finished, it was time for the highlight of the piece - to do an image transfer of 'Le ChatNoir' sign. I had never done this before, so, it was quite an experience! However, with the help of a video on YouTube, and with some practise, the transfer worked great. And, I already have two new projects to work on that use image transfers.

This piece was a lot of fun to do - I prepared a textured surface, used acrylics for the background, pen and ink and oils for the flowers, and Textured Glass (with acrylics) for the words. I used a stencil to apply the design on the strip that runs from top to bottom. The basic design for the flowers was from a pattern by Doxie Kellar (in her book 'Trendy Textures'). After all my painting was done, I sprayed, and I was ready to add the final touches to the piece - Texture Glass. It was applied with a stencil - and, although it was a bit tricky, by the time I stencilled the last word on, I was actually having fun doing it. I plan to do a matching piece with the colours varied with a sunflower on it. When done the set will be put on my diningroom wall - the colours will match perfect!

I am so intrigued with the Texture Crackle, Texture Glass and image transfers, that I have several projects lined up to work on over the summer. Hopefully, by the fall, I will be a pro at using all these techniques!

My winter art sessions end in a week - all the girls are finishing their projects, so I will take pics and post their wonderful work over the summer. My fall art sessions will begin in September.

Take care and thanks for visiting my blog.

Joan